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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24492226">Love is a Homemade Bento</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/sopenation/pseuds/sopenation'>sopenation</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>All's fair in Love and Bentos [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Haikyuu!!</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Bentos, I Will Go Down With This Ship, I love taichi a lot okay, Idiots in Love, Insecure Semi, M/M, Pining, SemiShira - Freeform, Shiratorizawa, Swearing, everyone knows semi's in love with shirabu except shirabu, semi's not that good at feelings either, shirabu sweetie why are you like this</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 04:48:33</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,019</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24492226</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/sopenation/pseuds/sopenation</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Where one conveys their feelings for their loved one through the process of making and hand-delivering bentos. </p><p>The sequel to of Bentos and Lovesick Boys, as told from Semi's perspective.<br/>—<br/>"Senpai, your gay is showing." Kawanishi Taichi to Semi Eita at one point, probably.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Semi Eita/Shirabu Kenjirou</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>All's fair in Love and Bentos [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1751662</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>441</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Love is a Homemade Bento</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Here's the sequel!! I had so many ideas for it and I hope you guys love and enjoy it as much as I did :)</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Semi's staring again.</p><p>It shouldn't be a surprise really, not when the object of his relentless staring is his disrespectful, infuriating, <em>stuck-up</em> kouhai who never listens, otherwise known as Shirabu Kenjirou.</p><p>Now, Semi stared at Shirabu for a number of reasons. One, he was the more experienced setter. Clearly someone needed to keep an eye on the second year and correct him when he did something wrong. Not that Shirabu would ever <em>admit</em> he was wrong, much less listen to Semi when he tries to give him advice. Shirabu was a stubborn brat underneath that pretty boy facade after all.</p><p>This brings him to his next point, Shirabu was undeniably <em>pretty</em>. True, he was incapable of any other expression except scowling and his terrible haircut was <em>terrible</em>. (Semi tried telling him that once. Shirabu, of course, just scowled at him.) Still, it irks Semi to no end when he catches himself staring at Shirabu's face instead of observing his technique. It also didn't help that the second year was <em>exactly</em> <em>his type.</em></p><p>Embarrassingly, his attraction to his kouhai has led to his downfall in many, <em>many</em> petty arguments. Sometimes during their more... <em>heated</em> fights (read: standing way too close as they exchange insults), Semi would get distracted by the gold flecks in Shirabu's eyes or his long eyelashes that he forgets to insult him back, inevitably ending in Shirabu winning the argument and parading his smug smile around.</p><p>Shirabu says he's a sore loser. Semi blames his losses on how unfairly pretty he is.</p><p>This time though, Semi was staring for a completely different reason.</p><p>He watches as Shirabu sends a toss to Ushijima, and the ball hits the ground with a resounding slam that can only be achieved with the sheer power of a national ace.</p><p>To an outsider the set looks flawless. Semi however, notices Shirabu falter at the last second and almost lose his footing.</p><p>He makes his way towards them immediately.</p><p>“Wakatoshi, I’ll set for you.”</p><p>“What the fuck?” Shirabu snaps. “<em>I'm</em> his setter.”</p><p>Semi's eye twitches at hearing Shirabu refer to himself as Ushijima's <em>anything</em>. He turns to look at him and his heart drops.</p><p>Up close, Shirabu looks <em>exhausted</em>. He's thinner than before, and his chest heaves painfully in a desperate attempt to catch his breath.</p><p>“No, not when you look like you’re going to collapse.” Shirabu opens his mouth to protest. “Shirabu, <em>no</em>.”</p><p>Shirabu looks to Ushijima, probably hoping for some backup. To his dismay, Ushijima just nods.</p><p>“You are overworking yourself, Shirabu. Listen to Semi.”</p><p>Shirabu glares at Semi, as if to say <em>this is your fault</em> and stalks away.</p><p>Semi pretends he isn’t watching as Shirabu walks away with shaky legs. He pretends that he isn’t rooted to his spot. He pretends he doesn't care yet his body is tense, ready to run towards the setter should his legs give way. He pretends he doesn't feel a weight lift off his chest when Shirabu gets to the bench without fainting.</p><p>Then, and only then, does Semi turn to face his friend, who’s looking at him curiously.</p><p>“Ready to start?”</p><p>(During practice, Semi pretends he doesn't feel Shirabu's eyes drilling into him the entire time.)</p><p>
  <em>*</em>
</p><p>He watches Shirabu more closely from that day onwards, taking note of every stumble and how easily he gets tired.</p><p>He <em>wants</em> to help, but it's limited to just passing water bottles and switching places with Shirabu when he's exhausted. Shirabu adamantly refused any more help, and denied that there was something wrong with him. Apparently he would rather die than accept Semi's help.</p><p>And that <em>hurts</em>. Semi had hoped to improve their relationship before his graduation, but Shirabu was dead set on pushing him away, crushing his hopes and his heart in the process.</p><p><em>He hates me</em>, Semi thinks bitterly. He feels pathetic, because what was more pathetic than loving someone who would never love you back? It was obvious Shirabu wasn't fond of him, <em>hell</em> he barely tolerated him. He might have thought Shirabu was just an emotionless little shit if he hadn’t seen the way the setter looked at Ushijima.</p><p>It stings, thinking about Shirabu loving someone who wasn’t him. Especially one of his closest friends.</p><p>But Semi wasn't going to wallow in self pity. He had long since accepted his fate, had always known that his feelings were unrequited. And he was fine with it, really. It didn’t mean he was going to stop pestering Shirabu to drink more water, or quit researching the symptoms of fatigue in the dead of night till he forgets to sleep himself.</p><p>So he pushes down the urge to hold Shirabu in his arms, and fights the ache in his heart whenever Shirabu shows up to practice with deep bags under his eyes. He settles for quick, longing glances when the other's not looking instead because he's an idiot and can't bring himself to stop.</p><p>Semi watches Shirabu closely, partly because of his own selfishness and wholly because of love.</p><p>*</p><p>On Friday, Semi pieces things together.</p><p>He was eating lunch with the rest of the third years, half-heartedly listening to Tendou ramble on about the newest issue of Shonen Jump. Ushijima, of course, was hanging on to his every word while Tendou in turn hung onto him. The redhead was too busy draping himself over their captain that he accidentally knocks over the latter's milk, spilling its contents on the table.</p><p>“Seriously, Tendou? Pay attention!” Semi hisses as he jumps back,<em> no way</em> was his uniform getting ruined just because his best friend was being an idiot.</p><p>“Now, Eita-kun, there's no use crying over spilled milk is there?” Tendou sing-songs and ducks the grape thrown at him. <em>“Eita-kun, don’t waste food!” </em></p><p>It misses. A pity, Semi thinks.</p><p>Reon chuckles good-naturedly, already pulling out a tissue to wipe the table down. Yamagata ignores them completely, focused on shovelling food into his mouth.</p><p>Tendou turns to look at Ushijima, who was staring at his empty milk carton forlornly. “Sorry about that, Wakatoshi-kun. Want me to get you another?”</p><p>Ushijima shrugs. “There is no need. Although, I was invested in our earlier conversation.” At this, Tendou positively <em>beams, </em>launching into another tangent about his favourite manga as their captain listened attentively.</p><p><em>He's got it bad. </em>Semi shakes his head, watching his friends with a small smile on his face.</p><p>It's times like this that he's grateful for joining the volleyball team. Sure his friends could be a pain in the ass sometimes, but he wouldn't trade them for anything in the world.</p><p>Absentmindedly, he begins surveying the canteen. Out of the corner of his eyes, Goshiki is talking animatedly with his friends, his cheeks bursting as he tries to talk with his mouth full.</p><p><em>It's nice to see Tsutomu with friends his age. </em>Semi hums under his breath, looking at the first year fondly.</p><p>His eyes drift over to where the second years sit. He sees Kawanishi nodding at something his classmate says. The middle blocker must have stayed up late again, judging by his sluggish movements and lifeless eyes, but then again this <em>was</em> Kawanishi Taichi he was talking about. It was probably just a normal day for him.</p><p>But there's an empty feeling in Semi's chest,  almost akin to disappointment. He can't seem to place what it is, frowning as his eyes continue to sweep the canteen.</p><p>His eyes land on the empty seat next to Kawanishi again and<em> oh.</em></p><p>Semi realises he's been subconsciously looking for something — no, <em>someone</em>. More specifically, someone with a hairstyle so tragic that it was impossible to miss.</p><p>He even cranes his neck a little, trying to search for that head of stupidly uneven bangs as subtly as he can.</p><p>He fails at both.</p><p>“Eita, is something wrong?” Reon asks, concern etched on his face. Semi realises how weird he must have looked, staring around blankly and neglecting his food.</p><p>“No, no. I’m fine, just spaced out for a bit.”</p><p>“That's his thinking-about-Shirabu face.” Tendou teases, leaning over Ushijima to smirk at him.</p><p>“I<em> do not</em> have a face like that!” Semi protests indignantly, but the blush adorning his cheeks say otherwise.</p><p>“Yeah you do.” Yamagata pipes up, stealing food from Semi's tray now.</p><p>“Oh <em>so now you talk you little shi—” </em></p><p>“Face it, Eita-kun,” Tendou cuts in before Semi can commit murder with a fork. “You’re hopeless.”</p><p>“I have to agree with that.” Reon says.</p><p>Semi lets out a scandalized gasp. <em>“You too Reon?” </em></p><p>Tendou bursts out into hysterical laughter that  sounds eerily similar to a hyena, prompting Ushijima  to slap his back when he starts choking on air.</p><p>Semi huffs and goes back to his food, and finds he doesn't really have much of an appetite anymore. The thought of Shirabu not even showing up to lunch makes him feel <em>weird</em>, and it just confirms the fears he's had for the past week.</p><p>He needed to do <em>something</em> about it.</p><p>*</p><p>Luckily practice was cancelled that day, which gave Semi enough time to find out exactly what was going on with Shirabu and come up with a way to help.</p><p>This translates to asking his crush's best friend, because God forbid he corners Shirabu and <em>ask</em> <em>him</em> about it. He'd probably be dead before his body even hits the floor.</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>Taichi</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>how's my favourite kouhai?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>thats bullshit and we both know it </em>
</p><p>
  <em>your favourite is bowl cut boy</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>don't call him that</em>
</p><p>
  <em>tsutomu might cry if he hears it</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>no</em>
</p><p>
  <em>and what do you want </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>rude </em>
</p><p>
  <em>stop taking after shirabu </em>
</p><p>
  <em>he's a bad influence on you</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>ah</em>
</p><p>
  <em>there it is</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>???</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>everytime we talk you somehow always find a way to insert shirabu into the conversation</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>no I don't </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>yes you do</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>I don't </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>you do</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>I don't </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi    </strong>
</p><p>
  <em>you do</em>
</p><p>
  <em>you only messaged me to ask about shirabu didn't you</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>....</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>well?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>screw you taichi </em>
</p><p>
  <em>..but yeah </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>you're so easy to read senpai</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>shut up</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I didn't see shirabu at lunch today</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>oh that</em>
</p><p>
  <em>that's been going on for a  while now</em>
</p><p>
  <em>he stays in class during recess to study</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>without eating?? </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>I brought food up to him the first few times</em>
</p><p>
  <em>but he told me not to bother afterwards </em>
</p><p>
  <em>you know how stubborn he is</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>unfortunately</em>
</p><p>
  <em>so he’s been skipping meals</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>pretty much </em>
</p><p>
  <em>he wont listen to me </em>
</p><p>
  <em>do something about it semi-san</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p><em>what makes you </em>think? <em>he'll listen to me?? </em></p><p>
  <em>he hates me </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi </strong>
</p><p>
  <em>believe me he does not hate you</em>
</p><p>
  <em>he's a tsundere with lots of strong feelings towards you, yes, but its not hate </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>what</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi </strong>
</p><p>
  <em>you heard me</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>...right</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I want to help him </em>
</p><p>
  <em>but I don't know what I can do without getting  murdered </em>
</p><p>
  <em>any ideas?</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>you could make bento and feed it to him lovingly</em>
</p><p>
  <em>like straight out of a shoujo manga </em>
</p><p>
  <em>I bet shirabu would love it</em>
</p><p>
  <em>or most likely you’re going to get your ass kicked so don't </em>
</p><p>
  <em>senpai?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>semi-san?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>...</em>
</p><p>
  <em>wait</em>
</p><p>
  <em>oh my god YOURE ACTUALLY CONSIDERING IT</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>...so what if I am considering it </em>
</p><p>
  <em>without the feeding him part obviously </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>can you even cook</em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Me</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>I can always learn </em>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi </strong>
</p><p>
  <em>that's sweet but I’d rather you didnt give him food poisoning </em>
</p><p><em>✓</em> <em> Read 16:12 PM </em></p><p>
  
</p><p>Semi scowls at his phone before throwing it onto his bed and face planting into his pillow.</p><p><em>Juniors nowadays have no respect. </em>He grumbles to himself, face still smushed into his pillow.</p><p>Well, Kawanishi may be a piece of shit but at least he helped confirm Semi’s suspicions. Shirabu skipping his meals directly accounted for his poorer performance during practice and his overall fatigue.</p><p>An image of Shirabu’s gaunt frame flashes in his head and Semi feels his stomach twist into a knot.</p><p>He reaches blindly for his phone, simultaneously wrapping himself into a blanket burrito as he taps into the search bar.</p><p>
  <em> <span class="u">Google: How to Make Bento</span> </em>
</p><p>*</p><p>On Saturday, Semi heads out to the grocery store in a vintage Star Wars tee, ratty sweatpants and a floral headband. He rereads the shopping list in his hand on the way there, ignoring the odd looks sent his way.</p><p>Inside the store, he scans each aisle, picking up some ingredients and occasionally making scathing remarks about the prices.</p><p>
  <em>“If I’m going to pay 900 yen for some goddamn pasta it better cook itself.”</em>
</p><p>
  <em>"10000 yen for beef? Might as well take my kidney while you're at it." </em>
</p><p> At the fish section, he fills up his shopping cart with packs of whitebait. His wallet is undoubtedly going to hurt but he fervently reminds himself it’s worth it.</p><p>On his way to the checkout counter he spots a stack of pudding on sale. A memory of Shirabu’s eyes sparkling as he indulges himself in the mango-flavoured one resurfaces and Semi finds himself dumping one inside his cart before he even realises what he’s doing.</p><p>After he’s finished paying, he carefully places everything into his favourite tote bag and heads home.</p><p>(There’s a picture of a sloth farting rainbows on it. If Shirabu ever saw it he would <em>weep</em>.)</p><p>On Sunday, Semi lays everything out on his kitchen counter. His cooking expertise is really only limited to packing sandwiches for his younger siblings and making omelettes, so he’s relying heavily on internet recipes.</p><p>He decides to get the easiest part over with before tackling anything else. Shoving about a dozen bobby pins into his hair, he measures half a cup of rice and rinses it thoroughly. Then, he pours it into the rice cooker and sets a timer.</p><p>He prepares the batter for fried whitebait by mixing salt and flour, and proceeds to coat the fish in it.  Once the pan is set up and he’s poured oil in, he begins frying the fish in batches. It doesn’t take long, and soon he’s fishing <em>(haha)</em> them out with chopsticks. After gently patting the fried whitebait with a paper towel to get rid of excess oil, he leaves them on a plate to cool and gathers the ingredients for tamagoyaki.</p><p>Semi takes the opportunity to check up on the rice, pleased to see it’s cooked perfectly albeit a little burnt at the bottom. He’ll have to remember not to put any of the burnt parts into the bento, but for now he settles on gently fluffing the rice with a fork.</p><p>An idea pops up in his head, and he scrambles for his phone, immediately searching for a song before pressing play. It’s a generic pop tune, but he doesn’t mind as he starts beating the eggs, swaying slightly as he does so and humming along to the song.</p><p>He’s still dancing along when he adds soy sauce, mirin, sugar and a little salt to his eggs. Again, he heats up the pan and pours a small amount of the egg mix into it. Once the egg has cooked slightly, he carefully pushes it to the side of the pan using chopsticks, and adds another portion of egg mix in.</p><p>He continues this until finally there’s a small, lopsided roll of egg. It’s not the perfect tamagoyaki, but Semi is <em>brimming</em> with pride at his handiwork. He quickly takes his phone out to snap a few pictures, all the while cooing at how <em>adorable</em> it is before slicing it into smaller pieces.</p><p>Moving on, he begins to boils water as he chops broccoli into bite-sized pieces, adding them into the steamer basket and covering the pot with a lid. When it’s finished steaming, he gingerly drains the broccoli and seasons it with sesame sauce.</p><p>With everything now ready, Semi began packing the food into the bento box with extreme care, keeping in mind to arrange it in the nicest way possible.</p><p>He stretches his back, stepping back to admire the finished product. All that’s left now is to give it to Shirabu tomorrow.</p><p>Semi just hopes he'll drop his stubbornness for once and accept it.</p><p>*</p><p>It goes about as well as he thought  it would.</p><p>He'd already expected Shirabu to get annoyed at seeing him, <em>but</em> he was a lovesick idiot with no self-preservation whatsoever so the logical thing he does is egg him on.</p><p>“You should really do something about your terrible haircut.”</p><p>Fun fact: A mildly annoyed Shirabu turns into a very pissed <em>and</em> slightly murderous Shirabu the second <em>anyone</em> talks shit about his hair.</p><p>It has the desired effect. A pretty scowl appears on Shirabu's face and he's spitting out words through gritted teeth.</p><p>“Semi-san. What. Are. <em>You.</em> Doing. Here?”</p><p>Another fun fact (that Semi would rather take to his grave than share with anybody else): He found Shirabu's angry face <em>adorable</em>.</p><p>He turns away —with a scowl on his face of course, he has to keep up appearances— because he can’t trust himself not to <em>melt</em> if he stares at the object of his affections any longer.</p><p>But, he manages to give Shirabu the bento. An impressive feat, really, considering he was seconds away from dying because Shirabu has<em> fucking doe eyes now and oh God have mercy on me. </em></p><p>“Semi-san, what... is this?”</p><p>“It's a bento, obviously.” <em>What the fuck am I saying? </em></p><p>“But why?” Shirabu presses, his brown eyes peeking from under long eyelashes to stare at Semi inquisitively.</p><p>
  <em>Please stop being pretty my heart is about to explode. </em>
</p><p>He schools himself into a (hopefully) neutral expression and <em>finally</em> meets those curious eyes. “Have you been skipping lunch?”</p><p>Shirabu's eyes widen, and as endearing as it was Semi had to remind himself that it wasn't the point here.</p><p>“Kawanishi told me.” He explains with a shrug, because if Shirabu's eyes got any wider he might actually die.</p><p>
  <em>Cause of death: Shirabu Kenjirou's Bambi eyes</em>
</p><p>Shirabu's lip curls at the mention of his best friend's name, and Semi can instantly tell that he's planning something devious. <em>(Murder, most likely.)</em></p><p>Like the good senpai he is, he cuts him off before the next time he meets Taichi it's when he's in a body bag.</p><p>“Why are you skipping lunch, Shirabu? It's unhealthy, and you’re still growing, you know.”</p><p>Shirabu looks him straight in the eyes, and<em>—</em></p><p>“Why do you care?”</p><p><em>It hurts</em>, is all Semi registers as soon as those angry words lash out. His heart feels like it’s been stabbed a dozen times before it gives way to anger.</p><p>“Am I supposed to <em>not care</em>?” His own voice sounds foreign to his ears, he's <em>seething</em> and Shirabu knows it too, flinching as soon as Semi steps closer to him.</p><p><em>Why do you think I don’t care? Do you really think so little of me do you hate me that much</em> <em>—</em></p><p>The onslaught of raging doubts in his head comes to an abrupt halt when Shirabu’s wide eyes pull him back to reality. They were wide with fear this time, Semi realises, and it feels as if he’s just been thrown into cold water and dragged back out.</p><p>
  <em>Breathe, Eita, breathe. </em>
</p><p>“When I heard you’ve been eating less I got worried, okay?” His voice is soft now, sincere. “I don't want you to go hungry, so I made you lunch.”</p><p>“You made this?”</p><p>Semi is sure his blush doesn’t go unnoticed by Shirabu. “Yeah, sorry if it tastes bad. I’m not the best cook.”</p><p>Shirabu stares at his feet, suddenly shyer than before and Semi is <em>struck</em> by an unbelievable fondness for his stubborn kouhai. “I’m sure I’ll enjoy it. Thank you, Semi-san.”</p><p>“You can return the bento box to me during practice. I’ll be back tomorrow with more.” He gives him one final smile before walking away, chuckling to himself when he catches Shirabu’s confused “<em>wait—what? </em>”</p><p>At the canteen, he gets grilled by his friends (okay, Tendou) about his whereabouts. He just shrugs, but even he can’t hide the small smile that manifests when he sees whitebait on the canteen menu.</p><p>(Later in the changing room, Semi relishes the faint pink on Shirabu’s cheeks as he hands him the bento box.</p><p>“<em>Thank you</em>.” Shirabu whispers, like he was afraid of being overheard.</p><p>Semi just smiles, watching as the second year leaves in a hurry and thinks to himself, <em>this boy is going to be the death of me.)</em></p><p>*</p><p>When practice is over, Semi’s phone pings with a message from Kawanishi.</p><p> </p><p>
  <strong>Taichi</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Taichi</strong>
</p><p>
  <em>you ratted me out to shirabu</em>
</p><p>
  <em>traitor</em>
</p><p>
  <em>he threatened me with his hair straightener damn you</em>
</p><p>
  <em>... although he has been in a pretty good mood since you visited him</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I swear his dumb ass has been sighing dreamily for 5 minutes now</em>
</p><p>
  <em>kill me</em>
</p><p>
  <em>✓ Read 6:57 PM</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Semi merely rolls over in his bed, burying his face into a pillow and<em> screams. </em></p><p>*</p><p>Semi never really understood Shirabu’s unceasing urges to murder his best friend <em>until now. </em></p><p><em>“Satori I’m going to kill you</em><em>—“ </em>Semi hisses when he catches up to Tendou, kneeing him in the back once he’s sure they’re out of sight from Shirabu’s classroom.</p><p>“Eita-kun~ that’s not very nice <em>oh shit</em><em>—</em>” Tendou yelps when Semi suddenly starts chasing him.</p><p>They earn a few odd looks. It’s not everyday you see two prominent members of Shiratorizawa’s volleyball team chasing each other down the halls, especially when one of them is screaming out violent threats while the other seems to be doing his best rendition of a human banshee.</p><p>They’re both leaning against a wall afterwards, panting and sweating heavily. Semi reaches to slap his friend’s leg weakly.</p><p>“You’re,” He cuts off, gasping for air. “such an ass.”</p><p>“Enlighten me, Eita-kun.” Even when he looks like he’s <em>literally</em> about to die of exhaustion, Tendou still has a shit-eating grin.</p><p>“Why the <em>fuck</em> would you ask if I had finally confessed to Shirabu?<em> In front of Shirabu?</em>”</p><p>“The poor child’s going to find out either way. Say, Shirabu-kun is pretty dense for someone so smart, don’t you think?”</p><p>“<em>Tendou</em>.”</p><p>“Ma, Ma, Ma.” Tendou pats him on the back two, three times.</p><p>They continue to sit there a moment longer, trying to catch their breaths.</p><p>“Eita-kun, I have a question.”</p><p>“What is it.”</p><p>“Is this whole bento thing perhaps an elaborate plan to get into Shirabu-kun’s pants?”</p><p>Semi turns to glare at him, unblinking and it was at this exact moment that Tendou knew, he fucked up.</p><p>“...<em>You have three seconds to run.”</em></p><p>*</p><p>He’s lucky he was right next to the bench when it happened.</p><p>The sound of a distinct smack echoes through the court, and he’s played long enough to know it definitely wasn’t the sound of a ball against the gym floor.</p><p>Shirabu is on the floor now, a hand tightly clutching his nose. Even from a distance, Semi makes out the little drops of red and his brain instantly kicks into autopilot.</p><p>He’s running towards the bench where he had left his towel, and accidentally bumps into Yamagata a little too hard when he rushes back to kneel in front of the setter.</p><p>It couldn’t be a heavy injury, seeing as Shirabu felt fine enough to tell Goshiki to shut up.</p><p>“Shirabu, be nice.” He chides, though deep down he was secretly amused that Shirabu still had it in him to insult their poor kouhai.</p><p>Shirabu seemed to startle a little at the sound of his voice, but he allowed Semi to place the towel over his nose and manoeuvre him into an upright position. Semi carefully moves his hand to rest on his neck, and when the younger man doesn’t flinch but instead leans closer, he smiles softly.</p><p>Thank god Shirabu’s eyes are closed.</p><p>“It seems you are not in good condition to practice, Shirabu.”</p><p>“That's obvious, Wakatoshi-kun. SemiSemi, you'll take care of Shirabu while he rests, won't you?”</p><p>
  <em>Satori I know what you’re doing you’re not a matchmaker you idiot—</em>
</p><p>Semi would bet his entire inheritance that his best friend had an evil smile on his face, and judging by the steely glare Shirabu directs at Tendou, he isn’t wrong.</p><p>He can’t help but feel a little upset at the reaction. Did Shirabu not want him around? Was he so desperate to get away from him? Not knowing what to say, he just nods and hopes the hurt doesn’t show on his face.</p><p>But Semi knows he’s not imagining it when Shirabu’s hand deliberately slips out of his grasp the minute they’re both standing.</p><p>He doesn’t comment on it, just focuses on getting Shirabu to a bench and telling Kawanishi to get ice and acting like his heart isn’t aching.</p><p>
  <em>Get over yourself, he doesn’t owe you anything. You’re the one with stupid feelings.</em>
</p><p>Shirabu complains a little because he’s Shirabu, and Semi pretends he’s completely fine by annoying him. Just like good old times.</p><p>If Shirabu has the energy to complain and scowl though, then he must be feeling a bit better, Semi reasons as he scoots closer. The team all tease him about having a mom complex, but so what if he was genuinely concerned about his kouhai’s wellbeing?</p><p>“Look at me.” His eyebrows furrow as he tries to get a closer look, reaching out to cup his face.</p><p>“W-what?” Shirabu gaped at him, his ears reddening to match the colour on his cheeks.</p><p>Semi raises an eyebrow, that was not the reaction he was expecting.</p><p>Still, he won’t deny that the blush suits him really well, and a mischievous grin forms on his face.</p><p>“I just want to check on your nose.” Semi tilts his head, feigning innocence. “What did you think I was going to do?”</p><p>“Shut up.” The latter mumbles, removing the towel but a trace of pink was still visible on his cheeks. Semi stores that image away in his head before leaning in and tilting his chin up.</p><p>Semi swears he had no other intentions going into this, he really just wanted to assess his injury. In his defence, he’d seriously underestimated how much prettier Shirabu was up close.</p><p>His porcelain skin, the defiant slope of his nose and even <em>his eyelashes were pretty</em><em>—</em> Shirabu was  <em>breathtaking</em> and Semi was a goner. He hadn’t even realised he was staring until he noticed Shirabu wasn’t meeting his gaze. <em>Shit</em>.</p><p>Unthinkingly, Semi’s eyes flicker to his lips.</p><p>“Your bleeding has stopped.. that’s good.” He winces internally at how hoarse his voice sounds but<em>—</em></p><p>Shirabu licks his lips.</p><p>Semi’s mind blanks.</p><p>
  <em>What. The. Fuck.</em>
</p><p>His hand moved out of its own accord, reaching to caress his cheek gently. Shirabu gasped.</p><p>Semi’s heart raced, they were sitting too close but Shirabu wasn’t flinching away, instead he looked at Semi like he was <em>waitin</em>g for him to do something.</p><p>
  <em>All he has to do is lean in—</em>
</p><p>“Am I interrupting something?”</p><p>Semi jumps at the sound of Kawanishi’s voice and looks to see the redhead awkwardly standing with an ice pack in hand.</p><p>
  <em>You seriously have the worst timing, Taichi. </em>
</p><p>Kawanishi discreetly shoots him an unimpressed look, that little brat. Well, at least now they can move on to properly taking care of Shirabu’s injury.</p><p>“Thanks for bringing the ice pack. Give it to me, I’ll hel—”</p><p>“<em>No</em>.” Came the cold reply.</p><p>Semi falters a bit. Even Kawanishi looks shocked. “What?”</p><p>“I can take care of myself, Semi-san.”</p><p>Shirabu’s words stung like ice, encasing his heart and threatening to devour him whole, until pain erupted from his chest, engulfing him in a wave of heartache.</p><p>Semi blinked away the tears that threatened to spill out as he continued to stare at the person he loved regard him with only a cold stare.</p><p>
  <em>Fuck feelings.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>They were the reason he felt like ripping his heart out of his cbest right now.</em>
</p><p>“And, uh,” Shirabu fumbled for his words, “you should probably get back to practice, I’ve been taking up too much of your time already.”</p><p>His throat feels too tight to speak, so he nods instead. He’s painfully aware that Shirabu is watching him closely, but he wants nothing more than to get away from the suffocating atmosphere.</p><p>He hasn’t even taken two steps when Shirabu calls out his name.</p><p>He stops in his tracks, waiting.</p><p>“..Thank you. For taking care of me.”</p><p>The words soothe his heart, if only a little, and he turns back to smile at the second year.</p><p>When he makes his way to Tendou, the other watches him pensively but he doesn’t push, which Semi is eternally grateful for.</p><p>He sits on the floor, curling in on himself and when he finally speaks, it’s barely above a whisper.</p><p>Semi exhales shakily. “... He doesn’t love me.”</p><p>Why is he in so much pain? He’s always known, but admitting it out loud felt like being crushed by a thousand bricks, and Semi was struggling to breathe.</p><p>Tendou casts a worried glance at him, and shakes his head.</p><p>“You really believe that, don’t you?”</p><p>
  <em>Yeah, I do. </em>
</p><p>*</p><p>They act as if nothing ever happened. Semi improves his cooking, dropping by everyday to bring Shirabu lunch. Shirabu thanks him by mildly insulting him but they’re always accompanied by a small quirk of his lips, and he hugs the bento tightly to his chest every time.</p><p>They never bring up what happened that day at practice.</p><p>Even though Semi wants to, desperately.</p><p>He wants to talk about their almost-kiss, wants to know what was running through Shirabu’s head then and why he didn’t flinch away, and most importantly <em>why</em> he acted so coldly afterwards.</p><p>But this was the closest they had ever been as friends, and Semi was <em>terrified</em> that bringing it up would expose his true feelings and cause their fragile relationship to fall apart when it was barely just beginning.</p><p>Semi was content just being friends. After all, he gets to spend more time with him, and even witness the rare moments where Shirabu laughs at his stupid Jokes. He’s also comforted by the fact that Shirabu  seems to enjoy being with him too.</p><p>Even their teammates have noticed the slight change between them, from the underlying affection beneath their insults to the friendly pats on backs and even the fleeting smiles they share with each other when their eyes meet. Kawanishi has sent him a knowing look more than once.</p><p>Semi just couldn’t risk losing him all because of his stupid feelings.</p><p>He’s content being friends, is what he tells himself.</p><p>So why was he looking up recipes for homemade chocolate at one in the morning, three days before White Day?</p><p>*</p><p>The chocolates were with Shirabu now, safely tucked away in the bento box and Semi really wanted to flee as quickly as he could. He<em> did not </em>want to be around when Shirabu opened it.</p><p>“Sem—Eita,” Semi jolts at the tug on his sleeve, but also at the use of his first name. Hearing it from Shirabu does nothing but worsen the butterflies in his stomach.</p><p> “I, uh, forgot to ask you something.”</p><p>Semi looks over his shoulder, heart doing somersaults at seeing Shirabu’s hand tightly clutching his sleeve.</p><p>When he looks up, the first thing he notices is the stark contrast of red against pale skin.</p><p>“Why is your cheek re—”</p><p>“—Are you free after practice?”</p><p>Semi blinks at the abrupt question. <em>Wait, what?</em></p><p>Shirabu bites his lip, refusing to meet his eyes. “I have something I really need to talk to you about, will you stay?”</p><p>He inhales sharply and nods, then remembers Shirabu isn’t looking at him.</p><p>“Of course.” <em>Anything for you, </em>he wants to add but refrains himself.</p><p>Semi’s head is spinning when they part ways, first Shirabu calls him “Eita” and now he wants to talk after practice.</p><p>
  <em>Is this real life? </em>
</p><p>What could he possibly need to talk about? It couldn’t be volleyball, they had practice together anyway. And Shirabu definitely wasn’t going to ask Semi about anything academically-related, he was obviously the smarter of the two. <em>(something Shirabu would smugly bring up each time they argued.)</em></p><p>Of course, there was that tiny spark of hope inside him. It was White Day after all, maybe Shirabu did <strike>return his feelings  </strike>No, that’s not it. Semi couldn’t allow himself to get his hopes up just to have them crushed and spat back out at him.</p><p>He couldn’t deal with the heartbreak.</p><p>Little did he know that much, much later he would experience the opposite of that.</p><p>Illuminated by the rosy glow of cherry blossom trees, Semi Eita pulls Shirabu Kenjirou close, whispering words of affection as their lips meet in a long-awaited kiss. All around them, cherry blossom petals continue to fall in slow motion as declarations of love are swept along with the gentle breeze.</p><p>It was on White Day when spring bloomed in Semi’s heart.</p><p>"...And that was the happiest day of my life."</p><p>Shirabu slaps his arm playfully. "Don't exaggerate."</p><p>"Who said I was?" Semi smiles at his boyfriend, who was sitting comfortably on his lap in one of his sweaters.</p><p>They’ve been dating for a month, and with each day that passed Semi found himself falling in love all over again.</p><p>He falls in love with the way Shirabu’s eyes light up when he sees him, and his habit of stealing Semi’s clothes because “they smell like him”. He falls in love every time Shirabu sheds his prickly exterior when they’re alone together. It was surprising at first, finding out his boyfriend was the clingy type and demanded cuddles 24/7, but it only made his heart more full knowing that meant he was comfortable around him.</p><p>Shirabu slotted into his life perfectly. When he steps out of cram school, the second year is already waiting to drag him off to eat, their fingers intertwining out of habit as they fall into step. Sometimes they’ll kick Kawanishi out to have a movie night, wrapping themselves in blankets and each other. When Shirabu inevitably drifts off to sleep in the middle of it, Semi finds himself ignoring the movie in favour of appreciating his boyfriend’s sleeping profile.</p><p>Even now, as they’re sprawled out in his room and Shirabu insists his favourite seat is on his boyfriend while wearing said boyfriend’s cream-coloured sweater, Semi wonders<em> how in the world </em>did he get so lucky.</p><p>Brushing his bangs away slightly, Semi leans down to press a soft kiss against his forehead. “You’re the best thing that ever happened to me, Kenji.”</p><p>Shirabu blushes a bright pink before burying his face into Semi’s shirt, mumbling out a weak “... shut up”.</p><p>Semi grins. Another thing he loved about Shirabu: he got flustered easily. And oh, did Semi <em>love</em> to see him flustered.</p><p>"I can’t believe you had a crush on me this whole time and I didn't even notice." Shirabu whines from where his face is smushed against Semi’s chest.</p><p>"That's because you're oblivious, love."</p><p>Shirabu snorts. "All you did was lecture me and insult my hair— wait<em> was that you trying to flirt?</em>"</p><p>Semi falls silent.</p><p><em>“Oh my god.” </em>Shirabu throws his head back, shoulders shaking with laughter. “My boyfriend’s a dumbass.”</p><p>“You brat.” Semi suddenly pounces on him, causing Shirabu to let out a surprised yelp when he’s pinned down before it dissolves into giggles as Semi tickles him relentlessly.</p><p>“Eita! St-stop—” Shirabu tries to swat at him but Semi pinches his side instead, and Shirabu has to cover his mouth to suppress his giggles. “I hate you— so much.”</p><p>When Semi finally stops, Shirabu is lying on the ground, breathless. He opens his mouth— it’s probably another insult — but Semi beats him to it.</p><p>He kisses him softly, the way he knows will make Shirabu <em>melt</em> and it does. Shirabu sighs against his lips, threading his fingers through his hair to pull him closer and deepen the kiss.</p><p>“Thank you for putting up with me.” Shirabu whispers when he pulls away, looking at him with so much tenderness that Semi’s breath hitches.</p><p>“<em>I love you</em>, Kenji. “ Semi punctuates with another kiss. “I waited for you for so long and God, it was worth it.”</p><p>Shirabu just smiles, resting their foreheads together and closing his eyes.</p><p>“Eita.”</p><p>“Mhm?”</p><p>“You’re the best thing that ever happened to me too.”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>You'll notice that Semi doesnt swear as much as Shirabu but when he does it's when he's flustered because of Shirabu.<br/>Also, Semi is just as terrible at feelings as Shirabu is, if not worse. Poor boy is so gone for him that he freaks out internally every single time.<br/>And let's be real, Taichi was the true MVP of this story. He had to deal with lovesick idiots on both ends. Respect.<br/>This was fun to write and definitely worth it in the end! The support I've received is overwhelming and I would love to add another fic for this series, if you guys have any requests/ideas please comment below! And thank you from the bottom of my heart for all the love &lt;3</p></blockquote></div></div>
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